What I am trying to do is exactly like the instructions on this website:
http://www.cprogramming.com/tutorial/sdl/setup.html
The only problem is that I didn't download the version of Code Blocks that comes with the mingw32 compiler. I got the latest release from http://www.equation.com/servlet/equation.cmd?fa=fortran and installed it in 'C:\gcc'. So, the folders that it is asking me to move files into don't exist.
The article asked me to download this file:
SDL-devel-1.2.15-mingw32.tar
Then in that file move the 'include\SDL' folder into the 'C:\Program Files\CodeBlocks\include'. (I don't have a CodeBlocks\include folder)
It then asked me to move the 'SDL.dll' to 'C:\Windows' which I was able to do.
Finally it wanted me to copy the contents of the 'lib' folder into the 'CodeBlocks\lib' folder. (Another folder I don't have because I installed my compiler separately from the Code Blocks install)
Since I installed my compiler at 'C:\gcc' I tried to add the files into the 'C:\gcc\include' and 'C:\gcc\lib' files, but that didn't work.
I am not very familiar with the process of using 3rd party libraries. I usually use Java where you can just stick the .jar file in with your code. Do I need the .dll, include, and lib files. Where do I actually need to put them? I would also appreciate knowing why as well?
Related
I want to package my executable file and other needed files into an install file (using NSIS) so that other people can install and use. There are a few file types I am uncertain of whether they are needed for installation or if it is safe to delete them.
Here is a random example of the files in the project folder as well as the Debug file automatically generated by VS:
I have already deleted the .user file as I know that is not needed, but not sure when it comes to .vcxproj, .tlog, .build.cppclean, .idp, and .pdb files. Also, do I need to keep the .obj files as well as the .cpp files?
This is my first time trying to do this, I am just messing around to seeing how it all works so thanks in advance.
You generally only need the .exe. Your app might depend on custom .dlls or the C++ run-time library in which case you would bundle the custom .dlls and/or the C++ redistributable.
Your screen shots are of a debug build and you normally want to distribute a release build instead because it is often smaller and contains more optimized code.
.obj files contain the machine code for each source file and is used by the linker when it merges all the required code into your .exe.
.pdb files contain debugging information. You should not distribute them but it is helpful to store them for yourself in case you need to debug a released version of your application.
The rest of the files in Debug and Release can also be ignored.
If your project is open source then you could include the c/c++ files and the Visual Studio project files. Or you could just upload them to Github.
In NSIS you could do something like this
InstallDir $ProgramFiles\MyApp
Page Directory
Page InstFiles
Section
SetOutPath $InstDir
File myproject\Release\MyApp.exe
File mylibrary\Release\*.dll
SectionEnd
It is a good idea to test your installer on a freshly installed Windows instance. Ideally the minimal version you require, Windows 7 etc. This should allow you to verify that you have included all the files required by your application.
I understand that .lib is static library linking and .dll is dynamic. This means that when .exe is produced, .lib does not need to be around for .exe to work. However, .dll need to be put in the correct relative path for .exe to reference and run.
My question is for .lib. When uploading the source code to Github, do I include .lib file in the project folder as well? What is the best practice in doing so?
Most of the tutorial that shows how to install library makes us link .lib file to its original folder and move .dll file into the working project folder. So should I move .lib file into my project folder as well? If I don't do that, it means the person that download my source code will have to go find the corresponding .lib file to link and compile right?
My own "IMHO answer" would be: "GitHub is concerned with source code." Therefore, I would not suggest including a binary .lib file there. And, I probably also would not put a binary .dll file there, either.
To clarify the difference between the two files ...
A .lib file is a library of object-code, resulting from previous compiles, that can now be referenced by the linker. The linker will choose whatever it needs, then copy these items out of the library into whatever it may be building at the time.
A .dll is a dynamic library ... "dynamic" in the sense that applications (and, other DLLs ...) can load it and unload it at runtime. (The Windows program-launcher also automatically loads any DLLs that are directly or indirectly referenced by anything it is launching.)
.dll's are "all or nothing." You load them in their entirety, at runtime. .lib's, by contrast, are true libraries, which are used only by the linker.
=== Edit: And the next Answer, IMHO, "nailed it."
Git repos are about code, and you should not have binaries in your git repos.
However, github has a feature called releases which allows you to upload binary assets alongside your tagged source releases.
You can add your compiled libraries there.
Your question is really about dependency management. Irrelevant of .lib or .dll, these are just different sorts of dependencies. Your question is if someone clones my repository, how can they build it?
The answer is you need a build script, makefile, rakefile, jake file, etc... something that the user can run to do the build. For instances this could be a README which says: "go download the files you need from website X". Alternatively you can do as you suggested an put the necessary dependencies within your repository. Legally this isn't always permitted as it is considered "redistribution". The best approach is to use some sort of dependency management. Depending on the language you are using there are different dependency management solutions. I would recommend only using libraries (.dll, .lib, .tar, .*) from public dependency repositories.
In Java, the recommended approach is using something called maven. Ruby has gems, node.js has npm packages. This is nothing more than a file with a list of dependencies, and a tool which knows how to retrieve them. To build my libraries it is as simple as running
npm install && node make.js which says run the nodejs package manager (dependency manager) to download all the necessary files, and then run the build script.
For C++ it could be something like make install && make which would require a makefile you configure to say these are the things which need to happen before the project can be built.
Personally C++ has poor dependency management, but that may turn out some negative responses, I'll just say dependency management in C/C++ isn't my favorite and for mostly internal software or small use I would still with committing the lib with your code. If there is a public repository which contains your lib files you could always generate a makefile/Cmake to curl or wget as part of the build process before you call gcc compiler.
I am trying to learn more about Multiplayer Modifications so i've downloaded the source code of San Andreas Multiplayer.
My problem is that the client project creates a .dll and a .lib files. I've searched on many sites how to implement them into a new project but i just did not find a clear answer.
So i am creating a new Visual C++ project where i need to implement the libraries resulted from SAMP Client compilation. Any help would be great :).
If you want you can join me in this project.
I don't know how SAMP dlls are but in general, this is how it works:
Linker need *.lib files. So you should copy lib files to your default lib directories or create a new directory under libraries of your project and copy them in it.
If the project you want to link have include files too, do what you did for lib files for include files too. Copy them to include directory.
Put DLLs in a directory that your application can reach. This can be your Debug folder or even it can be Windows or System32 directory. Choose where to put them on your own (it depends on many parameters. Pick one that fits you).
This link tells you how to put them in project directories.
That's it. You can call functions of the project you want to use. Tell me if you got problem.
I'm new to programming and wanted to check this program called primesieve. http://primesieve.org/
I have windows 7 with codeblocks ide.
I tried searching for a way to execute the program but couldnt find anything useful.
I have never added a library (is that called a library?) before so please help.
similar:
Installing c library in codeblocks
cant install GMP library in codeblocks
You should have received a .h (or .hpp) file and a .lib file, most likely with the names primesieve.h (or primesieve.hpp) and primesieve.lib (or something similar).
If you didn't receive those files in your download, then you may have to download the source. It should definitely have the .h/.hpp file, but it's possible you'll need to generate the .lib file yourself. There should be instructions for your system.
You need to include the .h/.hpp file in your source code. You need to link against the .lib file. This part is described in the articles you linked.
I am trying to install the MySQL C++ Connector on my Mac. I downloaded the tar.gz file from mysql.com, and when I unzip it, I have three text files, one of which is a Readme that doesn't provide much help. Then there is the /include folder which has two C++ header files and then a sub-folder called /cppconn that has another 14 C++ header file. Then there is also the other folder call /lib that contains a Dynamic Library file and two symbolic links to that Dynamic Library file, as well a a .a file. I was wondering where I place these files or folders on my Mac so that I can write a C++ application that can connect to a database? Or if there is a way for gcc or g++ to be able see these files in a location I specify when compiling? Any help would be much appreciated.
I don't know mac specifics, but usually (in linux / unix / windows - I dont expect mac to be any different) you either
put the header files into some place that is in your compilers header path(such as /usr/include), library files in your compilers lib path (such as /usr/lib),
or
you put them anywhere you like (perhaps /usr/local/my_cpp_connector) and then add that path to your compilers search path, both for headers and libraries.
You could also do like
/usr/local/my_cpp_connector/include
/usr/local/my_cpp_connector/lib
but I guess you got the idea at this point.